Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Thankful Today #2

#2- I have the opportunity to vote in an election today and I was raised to see this as an important responsibility.

It can be hard to convince someone of the importance of exercising their right to vote. It is very easy to think that one person's vote really is not that important amongst thousands. I personally think that can be argued, but that shouldn't even be the reason someone votes. The reason we as Americans should vote is because we CAN. We have the right to do what millions of other people living across this world would give anything for, which is have a voice in who influences our laws, economy, rights and well being. People in countries in the Middle East literally choose to risk their life to go to the polls, because they find value in their vote even though their system has corruption. Our nation's history is filled with stories of men and women who sacrificed greatly to give people of both genders, of all races and all beliefs the opportunity to vote in the United States. I wonder how ashamed they would be of our nation now, or dumbfounded, to know how few people take the opportunity.

Voting has never been a question for me. My parents vote in most, if not all elections, in their town and provided the example that voting is something that someone should always do. My dad took me to vote in the first election I could participate in, the 2000 presidential election.